Hindawi Publishing Corporation

Advances in Materials Science and Engineering

Volume 2014, Article ID 753496, 17 pages
http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2014/753496

Review Article
Review of Mechanics and Applications of Auxetic Structures
Mariam Mir, Murtaza Najabat Ali, Javaria Sami, and Umar Ansari
Biomedical Engineering & Sciences Department, School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering (SMME),
National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Sector H-12, Islamabad 44000, Pakistan
Correspondence should be addressed to Murtaza Najabat Ali; murtaza bme@hotmail.com
Received 5 August 2014; Revised 7 September 2014; Accepted 21 September 2014; Published 13 November 2014
Academic Editor: Luigi Nicolais
Copyright 2014 Mariam Mir et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License,
which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
One of the important mechanical properties of materials is Poissons ratio, which is positive for most of the materials. However,
certain materials exhibit auxetic properties; that is, they have a negative Poissons ratio. Thus auxetic and non-auxetic materials
exhibit different deformation mechanisms. A specific microscopic structure in the auxetic materials is important for maintaining
a negative Poissons ratio. Based on their distinct nature auxetic materials execute certain unique properties in contrast to other
materials, which are reviewed in this paper. Thus auxetic materials have important applications in the biomedical field which are
also a part of this review article. Many auxetic materials have been discovered, fabricated, and synthesized which differ on the basis
of structure, scale and deformation mechanism. The different types of auxetic materials such as auxetic cellular solids, microscopic
auxetic polymers, molecular auxetic materials, and auxetic composites have been reviewed comprehensively in this paper. Modeling
of auxetic structures is of considerable importance and needs appropriate stress strain configurations; thus different aspects of
auxetic modeling have also been reviewed. Packing parameters and relative densities are of prime importance in this regard. This
review would thus help the researchers in determining and deciding the various aspects of auxetic nature for their products.

1. Auxetic Structures
From the daily life experience, when the material is stretched,
the material not only becomes longer in the direction of
stretch but also becomes thinner in cross-section. The behavior of the material in this case under deformation is governed
by one of the fundamental mechanical properties of material,
that is, Poissons ratio [1].
Poissons ratio (V) of a material is the ratio of the lateral
contractile strain to the longitudinal tensile strain for a
material undergoing tension in the longitudinal direction;
that is, it shows how much a material becomes thinner when
it is stretched. Therefore, most of the materials have a positive
V. In case of counterintuitive behavior of auxetic material,
it undergoes lateral expansion when stretched longitudinally
and becomes thinner when compressed [2, 3].
The network is deformed by hinging of the ribs forming
the network in case of honeycomb structure. It is observed
that, for individual cells having the conventional hexagonal
geometry, the cells elongate along the -axis and close up
along the -axis in response to stretching the network in
the -direction, giving a positive V. By maintaining the same

deformation mechanism (rib hinging) but modifying the

honeycomb cell geometry to adopt the reentrant structure,
the cells of the network now undergo elongation both along
and transverse to the direction of applied load (in Figure 1).
Hence the reentrant honeycomb deforming by rib hinging is
an auxetic structure. Generally this structure is anisotropic;
that is, the value of V when loaded along the -direction (V )
differs from that when loaded along the -direction (V ). The
theory of elasticity is scale-independent and so the structure
that is deforming may be at a macroscopic or microstructural
level, or even at the mesoscopic and molecular levels [2, 3].
All common materials have positive V; that is, the materials contract transversely under uniaxial extension and expand
laterally when compressed in one direction. For linear elastic
materials that are isotropic negative Poissons ratio cannot be
less than 1 or greater than 0.5. This is due to empirical and
stability considerations related to work-energy factors, so the
bulk and shear modulus have positive values [4]. For auxetic
materials, these limits are different.
1.1. Deformation Mechanism. Reentrant cell geometrical
parameters, that is, , , and , can even change the sign

Advances in Materials Science and Engineering

x
y

x
y

Figure 1: Nonauxetic (honeycomb) and auxetic (reentrant) structure deformation mechanism [2, 3].

Conventional

Pull

Auxetic

Pull

Pull

Pull

Figure 2: Deformation of auxetic and conventional materials [28].

of Poissons ratio from negative to positive, when auxetic

honeycombs bear a -direction tensile loading or an direction compressive loading, where is the vertical length
of the cell member, is the inclined length of cell member,
and is the angle between undeformed inclined cell member
and -axis (in Figures 2 and 3). In other words, the magnitude of Poissons ratio decreases significantly at high strain
when the auxetic honeycomb is compressed in -direction

loading or stretched in -direction loading, while it increases

significantly at high strain when the auxetic honeycomb is
stretched in -direction loading or is compressed in direction loading [5].
In all of the auxetic materials there is a specific
microstructure that is vital to creating a negative V, deformation mechanism like rib hinging, bending or stretching,
and rotating, and so forth. Their length scale varies from

Advances in Materials Science and Engineering

X
H

(a)

(b)

Figure 3: Cell deformation by inclined cell member bending, (a) loaded in -direction, (b) loaded in Y direction [5].

Figure 4: Rigid rectangles connected together at their vertices through hinges and deforming by rotating [29].

the nanometer for crystal structures to tens of meters for the

key-brick structures [6].
It has been found that the V is a scale independent
property; that is, the deformation mechanism can operate at
any scale ranging from the nanolevel (molecular level) to the
macroscale. In some cases, the presence of auxetic behaviour
in very different systems has been explained by using the
same deformation mechanism, for instance, the rotation of
rigid units model has been used to account for the auxetic
behaviour in materials ranging from silicates and zeolites
(where the auxetic effect is due to nanostructure of the
materials) to polymeric foams (where the auxetic effect is due
to features at the micromillimeter scale) and macrostructures
[7].
1.2. General Properties of Auxetic Structures. The auxetic
materials offer some unique properties in comparison with
the common materials. Classical elasticity theory predicts
that auxeticity of materials should lead to enhancements in
certain mechanical properties, such as increased plane strain
fracture resistance and increased shear modulus, indentation
resistance, fracture toughness, and acoustic response compared to conventional materials [8].

Auxetic materials are of interest because of the novel

behaviour they exhibit under deformation and also because
many other materials properties can be enhanced as a result
of having a negative V. In the case of an object impacting
a nonauxetic material, the material immediately below the
impact flows away in the lateral direction, leading to a reduction in density and, therefore, a reduction in the indentation
resistance of the material. For an auxetic material, on the
other hand, material flows into the vicinity of the impact as
a result of lateral contraction accompanying the longitudinal
compression due to the impacting object. Hence, the auxetic
material densifies under the impact in both the longitudinal
and transverse directions as shown in Figure 5, leading to
increased indentation resistance [2, 3].
Auxetic ultra high molecular weight polyethylene
(UHMWPE) exhibits enhanced indentation resistance by
up to a factor of three when compared with conventional
UHMWPE and enhanced attenuation of ultrasonic signals
[2, 3].
Auxetic materials exhibit the very unusual properties
of becoming wider when stretched and narrower when
squashed; that is, they have negative Poissons ratios. Apart

Advances in Materials Science and Engineering

Nonauxetic

Auxetic

Figure 5: Indentation resistance of nonauxetic and auxetic materials [2, 3].

Anticlastic curvature
(nonauxetic)

(a)

Synclastic curvature
(auxetic)

(b)

Figure 6: (a) Saddle-shaped surface of the conventional material and (b) auxetic dome-shaped doubly curved surface [2, 3].

from the pure scientific interest of having materials showing such an unconventional property, a negative Poissons
ratio gives material several other beneficial effects such
as increased shear stiffness, increased plane strain fracture
toughness, and an increased indentation resistance. These
properties make auxetics superior to conventional materials
for many practical applications [9].
It is observed that auxetic materials possess attractive
acoustic properties, and it is found that at frequencies up
to 1600 Hz auxetic forms of polymeric and metallic foams
possess enhanced acoustic absorption when compared with
conventional materials. A further study examined the ultrasonic attenuation of the auxetic UHMWPE compared with
a microporous positive V form of UHMWPE of equivalent
density and compression moulded UHMWPE [10].
The auxetic materials have a natural tendency to
form dome-shaped doubly curved (synclastic) surfaces (in

Figure 6), unlike conventional materials which tend to form

saddle-shaped surfaces [2, 3].
The application of using cork, which is a material with
nearly zero Poissons ratio, for sealing wine bottles, is well
known. Another class of applications of auxetics is based on
the sound absorbing properties of auxetic materials, which
make them interesting for both civil and military applications. Furthermore, several investigations speculate auxetic
behaviour in biomechanics, like for the spongy part of the
bones, with obvious implications for the efficient design of
prostheses in cork and in skin [11].
1.3. Applications of Auxetic Structures. In the biomedical field
auxetic microporous and cellular materials have potential,
like a dilator for opening the cavity of an artery, or similar
vessel has been described for use in coronary angioplasty and
related procedures (in Figure 7). The artery is opened up by

Advances in Materials Science and Engineering

5
Artery

Auxetic PTFE
flexible sheath

Figure 7: Dilator employing an auxetic end sheath [2, 3].

Auxetic polymer
matrix

Piezoelectric
ceramic rod
(nonauxetic)

Figure 8: Piezocomposite device geometry, consisting of nonauxetic piezoelectric ceramic rods interspersed within an auxetic polymer matrix
for enhanced device sensitivity [2, 3].

lateral expansion of a flexible auxetic polytetrafluoroethylene

(PTFE) hollow rod or sheath under tension [2, 3].
An interesting potential application of auxetic material
lies in the manufacturing of smart bandages and smart filters;
that is, one of the properties of auxetic materials is that
once you apply stress to them, when you pull them, their
pores become larger. If a filter is made from these auxetic
foams, just by stretching the foam in one direction, the pores
become larger. With such uniform enlargement of the pores
an adjustable filter can also be made, which can range from
very small holes to very large holes. Auxetic foams can also be
impregnated with medication which would work as follows:
for a swollen wound, the effect of the wound pushing against
such a dressing would be to release the medication, and this
will happen in a manner depending on how much it is being
pulled [12].
In sensor and actuator applications functional composite
materials are used like piezoelectric composites consist of

piezoelectric ceramic rods within a passive polymer matrix

and are used in medical ultrasonic imagers and hydrophone
receivers of naval sonar. Recently, they are designed to
optimize the performance of these piezocomposite devices
which have shown that an auxetic polymer matrix is preferred to a nonauxetic matrix for several reasons. Firstly, in
response to a compressive load exerted on the surface of the
device the auxetic polymer matrix contracts laterally. This
allows free lateral expansion of the ceramic rods, leading to
enhanced electromechanical coupling of the device, which is
crucial for overall device performance. Secondly, for a device
designed to respond to hydrostatic pressure, a nonauxetic
polymer matrix converts a compressive planar stress into
a tensile longitudinal stress, which acts to diminish the
incident vertical compressive stress. An auxetic matrix, on
the other hand, converts the compressive planar stress into a
compressive longitudinal stress and therefore reinforces the
incident vertical compressive stress (in Figure 8). Another

Advances in Materials Science and Engineering

Auxetic component

Figure 9: Bullet or shell containing auxetic and nonauxetic components [2, 3].

(a) Conventional membrane

(b) Auxetic membrane

Figure 10: Particulate defouling capabilities of (a) nonauxetic honeycomb membrane filters and (b) filters having auxetic membrane [13].

benefit of an auxetic matrix is due to the concomitantly

high shear modulus relative to bulk modulus. This enables
efficient conversion of incident stresses on the polymer to
lateral stresses acting on the ceramic rods, thereby improving
the acoustic-to-electrical energy conversion [2, 3].
A number of other technological applications for auxetic
materials are actively being pursued, like a bullet or shell in
which one component is made of auxetic material such that
the overall projectile has Poissons ratio of zero. In this case
the movement of the projectile down a barrel is facilitated by
a reduction in lateral expansion due to the auxetic component
under the thrusting force (in Figure 9). Auxetic materials
have also been identified as candidate materials for use in
electromagnetic launcher technology, where a reduction in
mass is required in the future for many components, which
may be used to propel such projectiles. The intended recipient
of the projectile might benefit from a bullet-proof vest and

other personal protective equipment formed from auxetic

material due to the impact property enhancements [2, 3].
The potential to create filters by polymeric auxetic structures, with an enhanced pore size and with shape tunability,
can offer potential ways of overcoming the problems of
filter systems with conventional materials, like reduction
in filtration efficiency and the development of a pressure
drop across the filter because it becomes blocked. The
conventional honeycomb membrane filter pores undergoing
uniaxial stretching extend along the stretching direction but
close up in the lateral direction. In this case, a particle
blocking such a pore cannot be transmitted through the pore
when the membrane is stretched since the effective pore size
decreases, while the pores of an auxetic honeycomb membrane filter however, open up in both the lateral direction and
the direction of the applied tensile load, (in Figure 10), and
therefore particulate defouling is possible [13].

Advances in Materials Science and Engineering

Figure 11: Reentrant unit cell [8].

1.4. Types of Auxetic Structures and Their Mechanical Characteristics. There are many types of auxetic structures which
are currently present and vary from each other according
to their structural difference, deformation mechanism, and
scale. A range of auxetic materials have been discovered,
fabricated, synthesized, and theoretically predicted, such as
polyurethane and polyethylene foams, microporous polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), microporous ultra high molecular
weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) and polypropylene (PP),
highly anisotropic composites, laminates, and several types of
rocks with microcracks. Naturally occurring molecular auxetic -cristobalite and zeolites were also predicted to process
the counterintuitive property by calculation or simulation [8].
1.4.1. Auxetic Cellular Solids. One stage thermomechanical
process is used to prepare auxetic polyurethane foams composed of reentrant cells, which include triaxial compression
of conventional open cell foam into a mould, heating of
the specimen slightly above the softening point of the foam
material, and then cooling and relaxation [8].
A more controlled multistage processing technique was
also tried, which separated the transformation process into
several stages, by minimizing the risk of surface creasing
and producing more homogenous specimens [14]. Recently,
polyethylene foams were also transformed into reentrant
microstructures through the thermomechanical processing
and attained the auxeticity. The key to achieve auxeticity in
reentrant foams lies in their microarchitecture (in Figure 11),
where the ribs of each auxetic foams cell permanently
protrude inward compared with conventional foams convex
cell structure [8].
The mechanical properties of auxetic polyurethane foams
have been tested with regard to antivibration properties.
These auxetic characteristics would be useful in the manufacture of gloves for workers to protect them from the
damaging effects of mechanical vibrations. In this study the
static and dynamic characteristics of auxetic polyurethane

foams were analyzed. It was found that the auxetic foams

exhibited an increase in stiffness in response to compressive
loading. In the same study, an elastic, linear finite elemental
analysis also suggested a decrease in compressive stresses
where auxetic foams were concerned, in comparison with
nonauxetic polyurethane foams [15].
The process by which conventional, reticulated, positive
V foams are converted into auxetic foams involves volumetrically compressing the foams, heating beyond the polymers
softening temperature, and cooling whilst remaining under
compression (in Figure 12). This process buckles the cell ribs
inwards, creating a reentrant cellular geometry. It is believed
that under tension, the cells unfold outwards towards their
original shape, generating an expansion of the bulk specimen
and therefore a negative V. This unfolding process reverses
under compression. While heating under compression of the
foams to convert from conventional to auxetic foams, the
foams are twice temporarily removed from the oven and their
containers. Once removed, they are longitudinally stretched
by hand and quickly returned to the containers and oven.
This stretching episode, typically repeated twice, is just to
ensure that the cell ribs do not stick to each other. Inevitably
during the volumetric compression of the foams, creases or
wrinkles appear in the surface of the foam. It is found that
the location of these creases or wrinkles corresponds to the
more deformable areas noted following conversion to auxetic
behavior [16].
Conventional honeycomb structures can be fabricated
into reentrant structures. The negative V in the cell plane of the
reentrant honeycomb structure has a value that depends upon
the reentrant angle of the cell rib. The honeycomb ceramics
with auxeticity can be produced by the extrusion of ceramic
pastes through polymer dies produced by rapid prototyping
(selective laser sintering) and designed with CAD technology
[8]. Most of the materials have a microstructure that induces
a negative Poissons ratio at a macroscale. For instance, the
microstructure of auxetic foam is the three-dimensional

Advances in Materials Science and Engineering

1 in square section
tube mould

Digital
thermometer
Conventional foam specimen
Test tube
Conventional foam

Mould

Thermocouple
Foam

Mould + foam
Endplates

Bunsen burner

Clamp

(a)

Fume cupboard

(b)

Figure 12: (a) 3D compression of conventional foam specimen by inserting into the square section tube and (b) heating of the foam inserted
into tube at 200 C [19].

array of discrete ribs. These ribs interact together so that

a statistically large sample (macroscale) displays a negative
Poissons ratio [6].
In a comparison between regular and auxetic honeycomb
structures, it has been concluded that matrix material properties do not make a significant difference. There is a decrease in
Poissons ratio with an increase in volume fraction in regular
structures. Youngs modulus increases with the volume fraction. However, in auxetic (reentrant) honeycomb structures,
the V value is dependent on the inverted angle of the cell.
There is a decrease in Youngs modulus with an increase
in the inverted angle [17].
Laser ablation technique was used recently to fabricate
auxetic polymeric honeycomb membranes with cell dimensions of 1 mm, and these have been proven to provide
improved membrane filter cleaning and particulate size selectivity capabilities due to the unique pore variation properties
of auxetic materials. Active and passive smart filters based on
auxetic materials can be envisaged to give improved filtration
process efficiency whilst reducing the number and frequency
of filters to be replaced, leading to reduced plant down-time
and waste minimization in the form of a reduction in the
number of spent filters [2, 3].
It is found that the cell size makes only a minor contribution to the mechanical properties of foam; a much more
significant contribution is attributed to the cell shape. For
the isotropic properties the cells should be equiaxed. Three
different types of foam cell structure are as follows: open cell,
closed cell, and reticulated foams. The distinctions between
these three foams are that closed cell foams have a membrane
of variable thickness covering each face of the cell. In open cell
foam, most of these membranes are perforated, and in reticulated foams the membranes are removed by chemical means
or by heat treatment [18, 19].

Recently, a new methodology was proposed by [7]

which is called Empirical Modelling Using Dummy Atoms
(EMUDA), which is particularly suitable for studying
the properties of two-dimensional hexagonal honeycombs
deforming through stretching or hinging of the rib elements,
and it correctly predicts the magnitudes of Poissons ratios (in
Figure 13). They presented the potential for auxetic behaviour
of a novel class of structures which can be described as
connected stars as they contain star-shaped units which
are connected together to form two-dimensional periodic
structures. A macrostructure which has been studied for
its auxetic properties is the hexagonal reentrant honeycomb
constructed from arrow-shaped building blocks. However,
the reentrant hexagonal honeycomb is not the only tessellate
which can be constructed from arrows. Star-shaped building
blocks which have rotational symmetry of orders = 3, 4,
and 6 may be built by connecting = 3, 4, and 6 arrows in
such a way that the arms of the arrows form stars.
This study is based on an analysis through the force field
molecular modeling simulations (EMUDA). Several conclusions have been drawn based on this technique. It has been
shown that star shape containing systems with the rotational
symmetry of orders 4 and 6 show auxetic behavior to a greater
degree when compared with systems that have a rotational
symmetry of order 3. Also, the stiffness of the hinges connecting different rod structures affects the overall Poissons
ratio. An alteration in the hinge stiffness also has a different
effect on different systems.
1.4.2. Microporous Auxetic Polymers. The microporous PTFE
microstructure consists of an interconnecting network of
nodules and fibrils, whose cooperative interaction under an
applied load produces the auxeticity (in Figure 14). Soon
after, UHMWPE and PP were produced through compaction,

Advances in Materials Science and Engineering

n=4

n=6

Figure 13: Various tessellations which can be constructed from arrows [7].

y
x

Figure 14: : Microporous PTFE undergoing tensile loading in the -direction, tension in fibrils causing transverse displacement of nodes and
lateral expansion [8].

sintering, and extrusion route or by only sintering and

extrusion processing to achieve auxeticity. This is due to
cooperative interaction of nodules and fibrils which produces
an expansion in the transverse direction and at the same time
the fibrils cause the nodules to be pushed apart [8].
Morphology studies showed that the auxetic property
in PTFE is due to the microstructure rather than any
intrinsic property of PTFE itself. The microstructure consists
of nodules interconnected by fibrils. UHMWPE has been
processed by a novel processing route developed recently,
which has three stages, compaction of UHMWPE powder in

heated barrel, followed by sintering of the compacted rod, and

finally, immediate extrusion of the sintered rod through a die
[2, 3].
In microporous polymers auxetic behaviour was first
observed in a particular form of PTFE, and soon after for the
fabrication of auxetic cylinder of UHMWPE, polypropylene
(PP), and nylon, thermal routes were used. It was observed
that the processing temperature is the most critical parameter
governing the presence of auxeticity, and other parameters
such as die geometry, sintering time, structural integrity, and
extrusion rates were also shown to have some effect on the

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Advances in Materials Science and Engineering

Figure 15: Arrangement of laterally attached rods in a main chain liquid crystalline polymer [8].

auxeticity of the material. The new form of microporous PP is

formed as PP films using the same thermal processing technique involving melt spinning in an extruder and the same
PP powder, but different die geometry (i.e., from hole orifice
to slit orifice and from circular die-head cross-sectionally
to rectangular). Thermal characteristics of PP powder were
attained by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), such as
melt onset temperature and peak melting temperature. For
the characterization of the PP powder in terms of particle size
distribution, surface roughness, and shape or dimensions,
scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used. The extruder
used was employing an Archimedean screw mechanism,
five temperature zones, thermocouples, and die slot with
slit orifice. Characterisation of the mechanical properties of
auxetic PP films was carried out by video extensometry to
measure the strains across both the length and the width
during deformation of the PP films by both Instron tensile
testing and Deben microtensile testing equipment [20]. An
interesting observation during this study was the change
in auxetic behavior (i.e., a change in Poissons ratio, with
a change in the strain values). The film exhibited auxetic
characteristics up to strain values of 1%. After this, a
transition from negative to positive Poissons ratio (auxetic
to nonauxetic behavior) was seen. A positive Poissons ratio
strains greater than 1% were seen. For the auxetic polypropylene films, mentioned earlier, a higher Youngs modulus has
been shown in the nonauxetic film as compared to the auxetic
film.
1.4.3. Molecular Auxetic Materials. Polymers with special
microstructures and special inorganic crystals like silicon
dioxide, zeolites, and elemental metals are the auxetic
molecules. It is a simple molecular design approach based
on site-connectivity driven rod reorientation in main chain
liquid crystalline polymers to achieve auxetic behaviour (in
Figure 15). Under a tensile force, the extension of the flexible
spacers in the polymer main chain will force the laterally
attached rods from a position roughly parallel to the tensile
axis to a position normal to it and push the neighbouring
chains further apart [8].
Another molecular network is twisted-chain auxetics, in
which auxetic behaviour arises due to a soft shear deformation mode for helical polyacetylene chains formed from
adjacent chains in a coupled polydiacetylene chain network
[2, 3].

Molecular auxetics basically address overall weaknesses

that are inherent in auxetic microstructures. There is no
restriction of scale with regard to auxetic properties: therefore, it is possible to design auxetic materials on the molecular
scale. Thus changing the molecular structure gives a high
degree of control over the overall auxetic properties, by the
incorporation of molecular entities that cause the structure to
exhibit auxetic behavior. The advantage that these materials
will have over the microscale man-made and natural auxetics
is that these materials possess an inherent set of tailorable
mechanical characteristics ([21], n.d.).
Studies have been conducted to investigate the stressstrain response with reference to auxetic behavior in liquid crystalline elastomers (LCEs). It has been found that,
with an increased percentage of cross-linkers, the LCEs
show an increased modulus and a shorter polydomain to
monodomain (P-M) plateau. Stress-strain observations were
made with the simultaneous determination of Poissons ratio.
Typically, it was seen that Poissons ratio had risen to a
maximum point at around 50% strain and then decreased
with greater strain. For achieving auxetic response, shorter
spacers, nematic mesophase long transverse rods along with
higher strain values have been proposed [22].
Further Auxetic Geometries: The Rotating Squares and Parallelograms. A mechanism to achieve negative V is based on an
arrangement involving rigid squares connected together at
their vertices by hinges (in Figures 17 and 18). As each unit
cell contains four squares, each square contains four vertices,
and two vertices correspond to one hinge [9].
It is found that this type of behaviour may also be
achieved from the more general case involving hinging
parallelograms or in the networks built with different sized
squares [9]. The rotating squares design has been studied
with regard to potential oesophageal stenting applications.
Mechanical tests on polyurethane samples with the rotating
squares geometry revealed that there was a 4 mm extension
for a 2.5% strain, in response to a uniaxial 500 g tensile load.
After repetitive loading, the sample retained 1 mm of strain
value, which indicates plastic deformation at that particular
stage. The same behavior has been repeated (with different
strain retention values) at varying loads. It is believed that
only plastic deformation is needed for palliative treatment of
oesophageal cancer patients. In a tubular configuration, the
stent with rotating squares geometry was observed to have

Advances in Materials Science and Engineering

11

C
C
C
C

C
C

C
C

C
C

C
C
C

Figure 16: Unit-cell of a theoretical auxetic molecular network [2, 3].

properties that would be suitable for clinical applications such

as oesophageal stenting for cancer patients (in Figure 4) [23].
As it was reported earlier that the rotating-square geometry may exhibit auxetic behaviour through rotation of the
rigid squares relative to each other, it was recently established
that the auxeticity can also be achieved even if the squares are
not completely rigid. In this case, Poissons ratio was reported
to be dependent on the extent of deformation of the squares
along with the amount of rotation of the squares. Therefore, in
this study a combined model was considered which deforms
through simultaneous stretching and rotation of the squares.
It was found that the mechanical properties of the combined
model were dependent on the respective contribution of
the individual mechanisms. Also by modifying the relative
magnitude of the force constants, the geometry describing the
system, and the contribution of each of the two mechanisms,
Poissons ratio can be adjusted to the prescribed values [24].
Polyhedral Auxetic Nanostructures. An important class of
polyhedral framework nanostructures is zeolites which are
commonly used as molecular sieves because of their availability and their well-defined molecular-sized cavities and

pathways. Several idealized zeolitic cage structures are theoretically predicted which possess negative V. In most of
these idealized molecular structures, the auxetic behaviour
can be explained through a combination of the framework
geometry and simple deformation mechanisms acting within
the framework (in Figure 16) [25].
1.4.4. Auxetic Composites. Composites also demonstrate negative V [26], especially laminated fibre reinforced composites
also show negative V, and the phenomenon is observed by
controlling buckling by tailoring laminates with in-plane
restrained unloaded edges where Poissons effect was predominant to the extent that caused premature instability and
significant departure from classical behaviour. Composites
prepared by laminating unidirectional prepeg tapes of epoxy
resin reinforced, with continuous carbon fibres, were also
shown to be auxetic for in the range between 15 and 30 ,
which was in accordance with the standard laminate theory.
In angle-ply composites made up of unidirectional layers of
glass or high modulus carbon fibres within an epoxy resin
matrix, arranged such that there are an equal number of layers

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Advances in Materials Science and Engineering

X2

X1

Figure 17: The geometry of the auxetic rotating squares structure [9].

(a)

(b)

Figure 18: (a) A rotating parallelogram structure and (b) a rotating square structure built from different sized squares [9].

at an angle to a reference direction, theoretical and experimental investigations showed a large, positive in-plane Poissons ratio and a large negative out-of-plane Poissons ratio
restricted to a single sample direction. Using the specific values of independent elastic constants in each lamina due to the
extension-shear coupling, randomly oriented quasi-isotropic
composite laminates were predicted to exhibit negative inplane Poissons ratio by random statistical analysis [8].
1.5. Modelling of Auxetic Structures. The plastic failure of a 3D
auxetic strut lattice was investigated by [27], under uniaxial
and transverse loads to support an ongoing research work
in miniaturized strut-based sandwich cores. The beams in
Figure 19 were made up of struts whose curvatures gradually
decrease from zero. The plastic failure strength of an auxetic
strut core under uniaxial and shear loads has been determined theoretically by the help of two parameters, that is,
packing parameter and relative density. The main features
of the FEA models were spatial discretization of struts
with single three-noded quadratic beam element, degrees of
freedom were constrained at the vertices to avoid rigid body
rotation of the strut, and an elastorigid plastic constitutive
model represented the beam material.

The conclusions were made by comparing the theoretical

data with numerical data obtained from finite element analysis using ABAQUS/standard and depicted negative Poissons
ratio effect with lateral contractions and expansions under
compressive and tension for the auxetic cells [27] as shown
in Figure 20.
Finite element simulations were used in another study
carried out by [30], in which the results accomplished a high
sensitivity of the mechanical properties for particular ranges
of the auxetic geometric cell parameters. Mechanical property
values were acquired by finite element simulations of plain
stress uniaxial tests of auxetic honeycomb models. As it was
established earlier that regular honeycombs have isotropic
properties, but the unit cells of the cellular structures having
a different geometric layout from the regular honeycomb unit
cell are anisotropic, in general, the honeycomb unit cells are
characterised by cell walls of lengths and , with thickness
and internal cell angle , and in relation to cellular material
theory (CMT) their mechanical properties can be determined
by Youngs modulus of the core material, Poissons ratio of
the core material, the cell aspect ratio , the relative density
, and the internal cell angle (in Figure 21).
Honeycombs which exhibit negative Poissons ratio have
reentrant unit cells (in Figure 22). It was obvious that the

Advances in Materials Science and Engineering

Pr = 1

13

Pr = 0.7

Pr = 0.5

Pr = 0.3

Pr = 0.2

Figure 19: Packing parameters were used to quantify the negative strut curvature [27].

EZZ = 0.000

EZZ = 0.004

40

EZZ = 0.008

70

EZZ = 0.012

100

EZZ = 0.016

140

EZZ = 0.020

170

Figure 20: The colours shown are Mises stress contour plots and each column shows different configurations at the compressive strains
[27].

convolutedness of this unit cells layout caused a transverse

expansion of the honeycomb when pulled in the perpendicular direction. The cells convoluted because the internal cell
angle was negative [30].
To evaluate the in-plane properties of reentrant cell
honeycombs finite element method models were set up. The
models were composed of 2508 two-node beam elements
having a total of 2131 nodes. The displacements were applied
to the nodes and the reaction forces were calculated on
these nodes and divided by the initial area to determine
the average normal stresses. For the correct plain stress
loading condition, the rotations in the 1 2 plane of the

applied displacement nodes were constrained. The geometric

cell parameters played an important role in calculating the
in-plane Poissons ratio values, like an increase in the cell
aspect ratio of the walls determined the rise in the maximum
internal cell angle and the decrease in the magnitude of the
in-plane Poissons ratio [30].
A unique molecular network structure which was a
combination of acetylene bonds and benzene rings with
unusual property of a negative Poissons ratio was modelled
by [31]. This hexagonal network structure was named as
(, )-flexin, where is the number of acetylene links on
the diagonal branches and is the number of links on the

14

Advances in Materials Science and Engineering

X2

X1
= h/I
= h/l

Figure 21: Unit cell of the honeycomb with characteristic dimensions [30].

Figure 22: Honeycomb with reentrant cell units [30].

vertical branches (in Figure 23). The values of and can

be altered to get different structural arrangements that can be
either isotropic or anisotropic.
The aim of finite element modelling was to replace
complex molecular structures by simpler subunits to simplify
calculations, and for that purpose different finite element
models were used to investigate which ones gave results
closest to those from the molecular model in order to
identify the most accurate subunit. The two-dimensional
representations of the different finite element models for the
flexin structure were shown in Figure 24 and for the reflexin
structure in Figure 25. A number of models were used in
these figures and were classified in cases starting from case
1 to case 6 [31].
In case 1 along the free edges the moving constraint
boundary condition was used to simulate the same effect
of the periodic boundary condition in the molecular model
and both two- and three-dimensional beam elements were
incorporated in this model. As the -axis was an axis of
symmetry and -axis was not, therefore ideal situation was
for the axes to be along the middle of the structure, which lead
to case 2 which was one-quarter of the structural arrangement
for case 1. A network of beam elements was used in case 3 with

a matrix consisting of quadrilateral elements having Youngs

modulus close to zero, and across each quadratic element a
separate beam element was used. Similarly, case 4 was made
except that the beam was made up of quadrilateral elements
in case 3. Case 5 was used by having two-dimensional beam
elements which was similar to case 3 but without the presence
of matrix. In case 6 three-dimensional beam elements were
used [31].
The two-dimensional beam elements were used to model
a rectangular cross-section with unit depth, while the threedimensional beam was used to model a circular crosssection resulting from CC and CC links. Moving boundary
constraints along the free edges and roller-bearing boundary
conditions along the - and -axes were used to give
transverse contraction or expansion under loading. In either
the - or -direction, pressure loading was applied to one of
the two free edges [31].
Auxetic Design through Topology Optimization. A mathematical technique known as topology optimization has been used
to design structures that can meet specific requirements. A
2-dimensional metallic sheet that has low porosity has been
designed and it has been demonstrated that Poissons ratio

Advances in Materials Science and Engineering

15

C
C

C
C

C
C

C
C

C
C

C
C

(a)

(b)

Figure 23: Different Poissons ratios of molecular networks, (a) (1,4)-flexin with a positive Poissons ratio; (b) (1,4)-reflexin with a negative
Poissons ratio [31].

(a)

(b)

(c)

(d)

y
x

(e)

(f)

Figure 24: 2D representations of various FEM models of flexin structure; (a) case 1, (b) case 2, (c) case 3, (d) case 4, (e) case 5, and (f) case 6
[31].

16

Advances in Materials Science and Engineering

x
(a)

(b)

(c)

y
x
(d)

x
(e)

(f)

Figure 25: 2D representations of various FEM models for reflexin structure, (a) case 1, (b) case 2, (c) case 3, (d) case 4, (e) case 5, and (f) case
6 [31].

may be manipulated by a change in the aspect ratio of the

voids. Poissons ratio is found to decrease with increasing
aspect ratios. Adjusting even one of the parameters in the
structure can cause large negative Poissons ratio values [4].
In another study by [32] topology optimization has been
modified to a mixed-integer linear programming problem. In
this approach, the optimal designs have no hinge regions, as
stress constraints have been thoroughly addressed. Fabrication tests have shown that auxetic planar structures may be
successfully obtained using this approach.
The technique of topology optimization has been used for
designing microstructural auxetics. This technique takes into
account nonconvexity issues. Mesh refining leads to richer
and better microstructures [33].

Conflict of Interests
It is hereby declared that there is no conflict of interests.

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